The changes introduced by the BC government eliminate the conflict for provincially-regulated employees between the availability of 18 months of employment insurance benefits and only 12 months of job protection.

The three popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with current and 2018 payroll rates charts and complying with Bill 148 provisions that are in force January 1, 2018, as well as the equal pay for equal work provisions effective April 1, 2018.

Ontario’s Bill 148 “Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, 2017″ was introduced on June 1, 2017 and it is assumed that with the Liberal majority, it will pass into law in the fall. The bill proposes a few changes to leave entitlements in Ontario which are a step in the right direction but which in my opinion still contain an inexplicable flaw, common in most provinces.

On June 7, 2017, outside of House sitting, Bill 17, Fair and Family-friendly Workplaces Act received royal assent. This means effective January 1, 2018, most of the new rules updating employment and labour law in union and non-union Alberta workplace will come into force.

Join Minister Flynn on June 20 at the Ontario Employment Law Conference to hear about the newly tabled The Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act and the Ontario government’s other plans for the 173 recommendations from the Changing Workplaces Review final report. This special luncheon presentation will be followed by a short question and answer period for conference attendees.

As reported by Yosie Saint-Cyr in the October 24, 2016 edition of HR Infodesk, the federal Employment Insurance Act was amended on June 22, 2016, in part to decrease the waiting period for benefits to commence from two weeks to one week. The new waiting period is to commence on January 1, 2017. The change, in effect, reduces the total benefit entitlement period under EI, although it doesn’t change the maximum benefit period, or weeks of benefits payable.

The recent increase to Employment Insurance benefits for Compassionate Care Leave from 8 weeks to 28 weeks has given most employees in Canada the ability to care for seriously ill loved ones without jeopardizing their employment for up to 28 weeks. In addition to compassionate care leave most provinces also provide for critically-ill child care leave and some family responsibility leave enabling employees to cover the periods of illness of family members. So why don’t most provinces offer the same job protection to sick employees?

As the first blog post of the year, I thought it apt to first wish everyone a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year and second, to take the opportunity to take a quick look back and a long look forward at what might be coming down the road this year in human resources policy.

Sections 242 to 248 and 250 of the Economic Action Plan 2014 Act, No. 1 (formerly Bill C-31) came into force October 12, 2014. These sections allow employees who are on leave and receiving compassionate care leave (CCB) or parents of critically ill children (PCIC) employment insurance benefits to be able to switch to EI […]

Three of the most popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with the definition of family member for Alberta’s new compassionate care leave; when to amend a T4A; and the termination of an employee for offensive Facebook comments.

Three of the most popular articles this week on HRinfodesk deal with Alberta’s compassionate care leave; a reprisal claim for allegation of harassment under OHSA; and accumulated unused sick leave payout.

The Nova Scotia government has tabled a new Bill which proposes to amend the Labour Standards Code to create new unpaid leaves for parents and guardians. If passed, Bill 3, the Support for Parents of Critically Ill or Abducted Children Act, will give employees the right to take the following unpaid leaves:

Employees’ personal lives seem to interfere with their working lives significantly (many of us might say it’s the other way around!). Employees are facing increased responsibility outside the workplace, whether to children, aging parents, military service or many other pressures of their personal lives.

Building on the existing Family Medical Leave under the Employment Standards Act, the Ontario government is planning to expand the protected leave from work by allowing caregivers to spend more time with family members who cannot care for themselves because of serious injury or illness including cancer or stroke.